USN orders additional 20mm cannons for Super Hornets
A USN technician performs maintenance on an M61A2 gun aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan. (Photo: USN/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ruben Reed)
A total of 76 additional M61A2 Vulcan cannons will be provided by November 2024 to arm USN F/A-18E/F Super Hornets.
General Dynamics Ordnance & Tactical Systems is providing the USN with 76 more M61A2 Vulcan 20mm rotary cannons to equip F/A-18E/F Super Hornet production aircraft, under a $27.94 million firm-fixed-price contract.
‘This contract [from Naval Air Systems Command] provides obsolescence management and engineering support,’ the DoD noted in a 26 January announcement.
Work will be carried out at 19 US and two Canadian locations, with an expected completion date of November 2024.
In-service USN Super Hornets are already armed with a single internal 20mm M61A2 cannon firing up to 412 rounds.
Two barrel variants are available for installation on the F/A-18E/F: one weighs 92kg and the other is heavier at 103kg.
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